Trade Candidate: Ben Chiarot
With the trade deadline just over a month away, it’s time to look at some of the players who have a good chance of being on the move between now and March 21st.
A few years ago, Ben Chiarot was playing a limited role on Winnipeg’s back end and the three-year, $10.5MM contract he signed with Montreal back in 2019 raised some eyebrows for being what appeared to be a pretty generous payment. However, the 30-year-old has become a fixture in the top four for the Canadiens and after a strong showing in the playoffs last year, Montreal has set a high price tag for the pending UFA with several teams already expressing interest.
Contract
Chiarot is in the final season of his deal that carries a $3.5MM AAV. The contract also contains a 10-team no-trade clause.
2021-22
As has been the case for pretty much everyone in Montreal this season, things have not gone well for Chiarot. His primary partner from last season was Shea Weber who hasn’t played at all this year and likely won’t again. Former GM Marc Bergevin tried to recreate a similar pairing by adding David Savard but that duo didn’t work well when they were together while Jeff Petry – who has been moved into the number one role – has also struggled.
The end result is that Chiarot has struggled considerably. He has been asked to play a bigger role than he should be, including taking a regular turn on the power play for extended stretches. His offensive numbers are close to his recent output but he hasn’t fared well being the focal part of their defensive plan and the advanced stats aren’t any better when it comes to scoring chances and shots allowed.
That makes his case a particularly interesting one. How much stock will teams be willing to put into his performance over his first two seasons with Montreal and their playoff runs (spanning 32 games) compared to his level of play this season? The player he was during the first two years is worth a lot more than the player he has been in 2021-22.
Season Stats
44 GP, 5 goals, 4 assists, 9 points, -27 rating, 36 PIMS, 82 shots, 23:17 TOI, 45.8 CF%
Potential Suitors
No playoff-bound team will be looking at Chiarot to play the role he has been with Montreal. As a fourth option that can kill penalties though, he’d represent an upgrade for several teams while deepening their depth.
In the East, the Panthers, Hurricanes, Rangers, Maple Leafs, and Bruins have all been linked to Chiarot already. Carolina’s top four on the back end is set and someone like Chiarot would really improve their depth and take off some pressure from that top group. Even with 50% retention though, making the money work would be tight. The left side of Florida’s back end is their weaker side and for now, they have close to enough cap room to bring him in through LTIR although it should be noted that Markus Nutivaara hasn’t been ruled out for the season yet.
The Rangers have more than enough cap space and Jeff Gorton and former European scouting director Nick Bobrov now with Montreal, they’re going to be speculatively linked to the Canadiens on multiple trade fronts. Toronto has made it known they’d like to add to their back end although GM Kyle Dubas’ stated preference is to add someone signed beyond this season. If they were to send one of Travis Dermott or Justin Holl back to Montreal in a deal that also featured 50% retention on Chiarot, the move could be close to cap-neutral as well. Boston and Montreal don’t trade with each other very often and they’re more of a curious fit as Matt Grzelcyk, Derek Forbort, and Mike Reilly already comprise their left side. While Chiarot can play on the right, only the third pairing needs to be shored up there so he may not be the best target for them.
Out West, the Blues, Kings, and Flames have been identified as known suitors. St. Louis has a definite need to upgrade the left side of their back end and Chiarot fits the style that head coach Craig Berube would like but they’re basically in a spot where they have to match money which would make things more challenging as they ideally wouldn’t want to subtract from their roster. Los Angeles continues to hang around the playoff mix and certainly have a hole to try to fill on the left side of their back end. While it’s possible that Alexander Edler could return this year which would complicate things from a cap perspective, the Kings could ask to include Olli Maatta’s expiring contract which is almost the same price tag as Chiarot’s to offset that risk.
Calgary was involved in talks for Chiarot as part of the Tyler Toffoli trade earlier this week. While such a move would be harder now from a cap perspective, they also have a salary offset in Nikita Zadorov’s expiring deal that could help on that front. While Nashville hasn’t been directly linked to Chiarot, they’re a team that he would fit on but the question is how much they will be willing to spend on a rental player in a season that had been deemed as a bit of a reset coming into the year.
Likelihood Of A Trade
GM Kent Hughes met with the media earlier this week and all but guaranteed that Chiarot will be on the move as soon as someone is willing to meet the asking price. Reports have suggested that the Canadiens are looking at what Columbus got for Savard last season (a first-round pick along with a third-rounder) as the benchmark for a move and they are willing to retain the maximum 50% for it to happen. Barring another injury, it’d be very surprising to see the veteran in a Montreal uniform after the deadline.
Canadiens Place Corey Schueneman In COVID Protocol
Most of the Canadiens went through COVID protocol in late December when the team was at one point down more than 20 players. However, a handful of them didn’t contract the virus at that time and one of the ones who didn’t – defenseman Corey Schueneman, has been placed in COVID protocol, per a team announcement (Twitter link).
The 26-year-old was recently recalled to Montreal to take the place of injured defenseman Ben Chiarot and played a career-high 21:24 in Thursday’s victory over St. Louis while being one of two defenders to see time in overtime. Schueneman was likely set to be the one going back down to the minors with Chiarot expected to return on Sunday and this placement will create the roster spot needed to bring the veteran off injured reserve.
Worth noting is that just before being recalled to the Canadiens, Montreal’s AHL affiliate in Laval had a COVID outbreak of their own that has resulted in seven players being added to protocol. Schueneman will have to miss at least the next five days as a result of the placement, one that could be longer if he’s symptomatic.
Armia Listed As Day-To-Day, Chiarot Could Return Sunday
- The Canadiens are expected to have defenseman Ben Chiarot back in the lineup tomorrow, notes TSN’s John Lu (Twitter link). The blueliner was injured last weekend against Columbus and while it was a minor injury, they needed to move him to IR to free up a roster spot to bring up a replacement for him. Chiarot is widely expected to be traded by the deadline but it appears Montreal isn’t ready to hold him out of action as a precautionary measure just yet.
- Still with Montreal, the Canadiens announced (Twitter link) that Joel Armia is listed as day-to-day and will not play tomorrow afternoon. He took a skate blade to the face late in Thursday’s victory over St. Louis. It has been a tough season for the 28-year-old as he has scored just twice in 37 games in the first season of a new four-year, $13.6MM contract.
Montreal Canadiens Hire Vincent Lecavalier
After a few weeks of “will they, won’t they” reporting, the Montreal Canadiens have officially announced Vincent Lecavalier as a special advisor to hockey operations. Perhaps more importantly, the team has also announced that Nick Bobrov has been hired as co-director of amateur scouting, where he will work alongside Martin Lapointe.
Lecavalier obviously is the big name, and one that has been linked to the Canadiens for a very, very long time. The big center was a legendary junior hockey player in the QMJHL, starring with the Rimouski Oceanic for two years before going first overall to the Tampa Bay Lightning in the 1998 NHL Entry Draft. A long, successful career followed that included 1,212 regular season games, 949 regular season points, and a Stanley Cup championship alongside new Canadiens head coach Martin St. Louis in 2004. Throughout his playing career, Lecavalier was represented by Kent Hughes, now GM of the Canadiens, and rumored to be on the move to Montreal seemingly every summer.
He never did suit up for the Canadiens as a player, instead seeing time with the Lightning, Philadelphia Flyers, and Los Angeles Kings, but Montreal will finally get their man. He’ll join a front office that looks wildly different than just a few months ago.
One of those important changes will be Bobrov, who is joining his former boss in Jeff Gorton. The scout worked as the director of European scouting for several years under Gorton in New York and was also with him during his years with the Boston Bruins. The Canadiens are about to go through a franchise-altering draft, with 12 picks in their pocket already and more to come before next month’s trade deadline. Hosting the draft in Montreal, they have a chance to really pump the prospect pool full of talent in one quick sweep.
Morning Notes: Rangers, Memorial Cup, Cozens
Montreal Canadiens general manager Kent Hughes was clear today that he’s open for business and just before he spoke to the media, Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic tweeted out an interesting thought. LeBrun connected the Canadiens with the New York Rangers, suggesting that Montreal “covets” some Rangers prospects and would rather add those than more draft picks.
It’s easy to understand why the Montreal front office could be interested in some of New York’s prospects, given Jeff Gorton was the one who drafted or acquired most of them, before being dismissed a little under a year ago. The Canadiens are also in discussions with former Rangers director of European scouting Nick Bobrov, according to Eric Engels of Sportsnet, who would also have familiarity with many of the team’s young players.
- The Memorial Cup has new dates after disruptions to the league schedules forced it to be pushed back. The event, which pits the OHL, WHL, and QMJHL champions and a host team against each other, will be held between June 20-29 this year. The Saint John Seadogs will be the host, and will open things up with a game against the OHL champion on the first day. Notably, this will likely be the last big scouting event before the 2022 NHL Draft, which is scheduled for July 7 in Montreal.
- Dylan Cozens has escaped a suspension but owes the league $2,235.42 for his cross-check on Brock Nelson last night. The young Buffalo Sabres forward will now have a fine on his supplementary discipline record, meaning any future incidents will be looked at with even more scrutiny. Cozens followed Nelson up the ice to deliver the cross-check from behind after it appeared as though the Islanders’ player got his stick between Cozens’ legs and earned a two-minute minor on the play.
Montreal Open To Trading Jeff Petry
The headline out of Montreal this morning could simply be that the Canadiens are open to trading anyone, as general manager Kent Hughes met with the media to talk about the recent Tyler Toffoli deal and what comes next for his franchise. On Ben Chiarot, there was no hiding that the Canadiens expect to trade him in the coming weeks but another name of interest also drew an honest answer from Hughes. As Eric Engels of Sportsnet relays, the Canadiens’ GM explained that if they can “find a trade that works for us and another team” they will trade Jeff Petry.
Finding that trade is obviously a difficult task, given Petry’s play this year, his age, and his contract situation. The 34-year-old has been a shadow of himself this season, appearing at times as if he’s completely lost the swagger and offensive upside that has made him one of the most dangerous defensemen in the league the last few years. He holds onto the puck less, joins the rush less and it has resulted in Petry recording just two goals and seven points in 41 games. That coming from a player who had at least 11 goals and 40 points in each of the last four seasons, including the shortened 56-game campaign in 2020-21.
Petry was a dynamo for the Canadiens last year and was a huge part of why they went all the way to the Stanley Cup Finals, logging more than 24 minutes a night in the postseason. This year that play has completely disappeared, making any acquisition a risky proposition.
Even on an expiring contract, Petry’s play would make him a question mark; it’s an even tougher trade to make when he has three years left on his deal. Signed to a four-year, $25MM extension back in 2020, the veteran defenseman is under contract through the 2024-25 season. He holds a no-movement clause that means he can’t be waived and a 15-team no-trade clause that will limit the number of teams that can even acquire him–or at least put some of the decision-making power in Petry’s hands. That contract also will see a salary ramp to $7.5MM in each of the next two seasons, with $3MM coming in signing bonuses each year. That’s not something that would seem that appealing to a contender unless the Canadiens retain money or Petry reverts to his previous level of performance.
Still, it’s obvious that Hughes and Jeff Gorton are fixing to make sweeping changes to the Montreal roster. They’ve already moved out one of their top trade chips in Tyler Toffoli, who was signed to a much more reasonable contract and will be flipping Chiarot before the deadline. If Petry is also on the move, you can probably count the number of truly safe players on one hand.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
Calgary Flames Acquire Tyler Toffoli
The Calgary Flames have been interested in Montreal Canadiens forward Tyler Toffoli for some time, and they’ve finally landed their man. The team has sent a 2022 first-round pick, a 2023 fifth-round pick, prospect Emil Heinemann and forward Tyler Pitlick to the Canadiens in exchange for Toffoli. The first-round selection is top-10 protected, though with Calgary’s current position that seems unlikely to occur anyway. If they do end up with a top-10 pick, Calgary would instead send their 2023 first-round selection and an extra fourth-round pick in 2024. Chris Johnston of TSN adds that no salary has been retained in the deal.
Toffoli, 29, has been an excellent offensive piece since arriving in Montreal, recording 37 goals and 70 points in 89 games with the Canadiens. While only nine of those goals have come this season, almost all of the Canadiens’ forwards have seen a dip in production due to the weak overall play of the team. If there’s anyone in the league that knows exactly what Toffoli can bring to the ice it is Flames head coach Darryl Sutter, who coached the forward to a Stanley Cup championship in 2014 when both were with the Los Angeles Kings.
The fact that Calgary has an obvious hole on the right side in the top-nine also makes Toffoli a perfect addition, though he can sometimes be a tough player to fit in with certain linemates. A powerful skater, he’s not a particularly graceful or efficient one, and his offensive chances usually come from his top-notch hockey IQ and anticipation instead of raw tools. Should he join Calgary, Sutter and company would need to find a mix that maximizes those abilities.
Notably, Toffoli also doesn’t represent a deadline rental. Signed to a four-year, $17MM contract in the fall of 2020, he is signed through 2023-24 at a $4.25MM cap hit. That’s certainly a reasonable amount given his offensive upside and the Flames have more than enough money coming off the books at the end of the year to go shopping for players with term. Even if they can get a deal done with Johnny Gaudreau to keep him in Calgary, names like Nikita Zadorov and Erik Gudbranson are all pending unrestricted free agent who could be shed to create some additional flexibility.
That also could be a pointed look at how Montreal GM Kent Hughes is planning on moving forward with the current roster. He has hinted already that there would be substantial changes to the roster–not just rental sell-offs like Chiarot–as he looks to turn around the franchise. With this trade they’ve made the first major incision into the core group, carving out a key player for a package of futures.
Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic notes that the Canadiens were especially interested in Heineman, who they will still need to sign. The 20-year-old prospect arrived in the Calgary organization from the Florida Panthers in last year’s Sam Bennett trade after being selected in the second round in 2020. A forward that plays for Leksands IF in the Swedish Hockey League, he has 16 points in 36 games. Scott Wheeler of The Athletic recently ranked Heineman as the seventh-best prospect in Calgary’s system.
Adding another first-round pick is also notable because this year’s draft is in Montreal. The team already had 11 picks and will likely add even more before the March 21 deadline, with players like Ben Chiarot still garnering interest. If you wanted to rebuild the entire system, that kind of a draft is the best way to start.
For Calgary though, a move like this shows just how invested they are in a long playoff run this season. The team could potentially lose Gaudreau to free agency, will have to work out a new deal with Matthew Tkachuk, and will no longer have luxuries like Oliver Kylington on a league-minimum contract after this season. They have all the pieces to contend for the Stanley Cup and Toffoli’s addition should only strengthen their lineup with some added secondary scoring.
By moving Pitlick out at the same time, the Flames also created enough room to avoid any cap issues. The biggest concern for most contenders–and enticing prospect for most sellers–is how difficult the flat cap has made it to add at the deadline. Calgary avoids having to pay a premium for salary retention, even if they are still handing out a fairly substantial package for the veteran forward. Pitlick happens to be joining his cousin Rem Pitlick with the Canadiens, who was claimed off waivers last month, but the newcomer could also be flipped if healthy at the deadline. Since he is a pending UFA, it doesn’t make a ton of sense for the Canadiens to keep him–Pitlick netted the Seattle Kraken a fourth-round pick last summer.
Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet first tweeted that talks were picking up steam between the two clubs.
Ben Chiarot Out One Week With Lower-Body Injury
After being moved to injured reserve earlier today, the Montreal Canadiens announced that defenseman Ben Chiarot will miss one week with a lower-body injury.
Chiarot is expected to be one of the top targets available at this year’s Trade Deadline. The 30-year-old left-shot defenseman has nine points through 44 games this season in a top-pairing role, averaging a healthy 23:17 per game. Multiple reports suggest that many teams are interested in the veteran of 459 NHL games, noting that it’s likely he’ll fetch a first-round pick.
He joins David Savard, Joel Edmundson, and captain Shea Weber on the list of injured Canadiens defensemen. Corey Schueneman was recalled from the AHL’s Laval Rocket this morning and played for the team in a 5-3 loss to the Buffalo Sabres in Chiarot’s place.
Chiarot is in the final season of a three-year, $10.5MM contract he signed with Montreal during free agency in 2019 after spending a decade in the Winnipeg Jets organization. He was originally one of the last draft selections of the Atlanta Thrashers, selected 120th overall in 2009.
Montreal Canadiens Linked To Vincent Lecavalier
Feb. 12: It seems there is at least something to the Lecavalier-Canadiens rumors. In an interview with the Montreal Gazette’s Stu Cowan, Hughes confirms that he does hope to bring in his former client as a member of the hockey operations staff. However, he dispels the rumors that Lecavalier would be in line for an Assistant GM job:
I’ve had conversations with him. To me, trying to identify from Vinnie what would you like to do? He’s installed in Tampa for the time being. He’s got a young family, he’s not going to pack up and move. It’s not fair for his family to do that at this point. So the question is how can we involve him in a way that interests him and benefits us? And if we can do that we’re going to do it. It’s not going to be assistant GM, despite all the rumors, but if we can find a way to do it — and I have ideas about it — then we’d absolutely like to do it. Everything that we do has to in part be about our culture and the kind of people that we bring in, what they stand for. And I don’t think that’s just in the locker room. That has to be the whole organization, from the top down.
Feb. 9, 8:50pm: It’s just like his playing days all over again. Despite a seemingly reliable report that Lecavalier would be joining the Canadiens, the man himself has denied the rumors. Lecavalier tells Simon Lorange of La Presse that the report of him accepting the Montreal Assistant GM job is erroneous and he is happy in Florida. While this could be temporary posturing by the former star player, it doesn’t appear that this is the case. Will the Lecavalier to Montreal rumors ever end?
Feb. 9, 7:30pm: The Montreal Canadiens are about as far away from the two-time defending Stanley Cup champion Tampa Bay Lightning as a team can be. In their efforts to turn around a historically bad season and work their way back into relevance, it seems the club has decided to reunite the 2004 Stanley Cup-winning Bolts squad. After naming Martin St. Louis as interim head coach earlier today, the Habs are now expected to name his former teammate, Vincent Lecavalier, as Assistant General Manager, according to Montreal reporter Marc-Olivier Beaudoin.
In reality, it was almost certainly Lecavalier’s relationship to new Canadiens GM Kent Hughes that led to this hire rather than St. Louis. Hughes was Lecavalier’s agent for much of his decorated career. More recently, it was actually Lecavalier who Hughes credits for convincing him to leave agency behind and take the Montreal GM gig. Lecavalier’s ties to the city also undoubtedly assisted in this decision. A Quebec native, Lecavalier never played for the Canadiens, but was a rumored target throughout his career. While his playing days are now over, the wish of many Habs fans has finally been granted.
The first overall pick in the 1998 NHL Draft, the 41-year-old Lecavalier had a long, successful playing career before retiring in 2016. Best remembered as the long-time captain of the Lightning, Lecavalier also played for the Philadelphia Flyers and Los Angeles Kings at the end of his 1,212-game NHL career. Lecavalier finished just shy of 1,000 career points but in his prime the four-time All-Star was a perennial point-per-game scorer, including an unforgettable 52-goal, 108-point Rocket Richard-winning campaign in 2006-07. A power forward with elite possession ability, Lecavalier brings plenty of hockey IQ to his new role and will be an asset to the Canadiens, especially given his history with both the new GM and new head coach.
Canadiens Acquire Andrew Hammond From Wild
In need of a netminder, the Montreal Canadiens have worked quickly to find a solution. Veteran Andrew Hammond has been acquired from the Minnesota Wild this morning, the team announced. Going the other way is AHL enforcer Brandon Baddock. Hammond is expected to join the NHL roster in Montreal immediately. Baddock will report to AHL Iowa.
As Sportsnet’s Eric Engels details, Montreal had found themselves in quite the pickle in goal. Presumptive NHL tandem Carey Price and Jake Allen are both sidelined due to injury, as is depth option Michael McNiven and none are especially close to returning. Sam Montembeault has performed admirably as the de facto starter, but he too is not playing at full strength. Meanwhile, current backup Cayden Primeau is floundering, allowing 17 goals in just 174 total minutes in his past five appearances. The Habs wanted to get the young keeper back to the AHL’s Laval Rocket before his NHL struggles started to impact his development, but had no one else to call upon. The team was also greatly limited by both the salary cap and contract cap when it comes to adding someone from the outside.
The solution was a one-for-one swap to bring in the affordable but reliable Hammond, which does not substantially impact the team’s status in regards to roster limits. “The Hamburglar”, 34, has surprisingly not played in an NHL game since 2017-18, though he has dressed as a backup at least once in each of the past three seasons, including earlier this year with Minnesota. At times during his early career, Hammond looked like he was on track to become a long-term NHL contributor, but has settled in to more of a No. 3 role. Yet, his NHL numbers are still somewhat remarkable – 27 wins, a .923 save percentage, and a 2.31 GAA in 56 games. Clearly, there is more to Hammond’s game than just his performance in limited in NHL action, otherwise he would in fact be an NHL regular. His unspectacular AHL numbers speak to that, as does the journeyman nature of his career over the past five years. With that said, a combination of experience, veteran presence, and results, however limited, make him a nice addition for a Montreal team desperate for stability.
The Wild could afford to move on from Hammond with a reliable NHL tandem of veteran Cam Talbot and youngster Kaapo Kahkonen and a large stable of minor league goaltenders, including veteran Zane McIntyre, who has played well for AHL Iowa, and prospects Dereck Baribeau and Hunter Jones. In Baddock, they gain some grit in the organization, which always nice to have at your disposal during the stretch run and postseason. Baddock only has one career NHL game, but has long been a fearsome presence in the AHL as a perennial hits and penalty minutes leader.